Swallowing problems in humans include difficulty in swallowing, inability to swallow, and discomfort in swallowing. These problems are collectively termed dysphagia. Dysphagia is a common unfortunate secondary condition that accompanies (i.e., is concomitant with) many primary human disease states such as at least one of blunt throat injury, surgery caused impairment, stroke, multiple sclerosis, asperger syndrome, esophageal cancer, laryngeal cancer, chagus disease, celiac, cystic fibrosis, Huntington's disease, Niemann-Pick disease, neurological conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, obesity, Riley-Day syndrome, high cholesterol, corn allergies and corn sensitivities, scleroderma, and diabetes.
Dysphagia is pervasive as between about five and about fifteen million people in the United States suffer from dysphagia. People with dysphagia generally lack proper muscle control and coordination to properly seal the windpipe or they lack the ability to properly propel the entire bolus of food and/or beverage to the stomach. If this condition goes unnoticed, sufferers are prone to foodstuff(s) and beverages going into the sufferer's lungs rather than being routed properly to their stomach. When routing to the lungs occurs, the patient sufferer is at increased risk for growing unhealthy bacteria in the lungs which raises the prospect of aspiration pneumonia (with its accompanying attendant risks and hospitalization) and/or even fatal asphyxiation.
Thickening the beverages of those humans afflicted with dysphagia is a common method of managing dysphagia. Thickening provides better bolus control, greater oral stimulation, and when swallowed, if incompletely propelled into the esophagus, it helps prevent undesired and potentially fatal aspiration of fluids into the lungs.
Generally and most commonly, starch is used to thicken beverages of dysphagia patients. This can either be accomplished manually at or near the point and time of service or it can be accomplished in a supplier's manufacturing facility. The former involves the addition of dry powder, agitation and time to achieve the thickness. The latter commonly is referred to as pre-thickened beverages.
It is highly desired to have a product for dysphagia sufferers which improves upon the current thickeners available to dysphagic patients to better and more completely meet all of their needs. Powders have serious problems in that they do not disperse well, leave powder clumps, do not thicken many beverages, and will continue to thicken over time after mixing.
In addition, unfortunately, starch also has several serious inherent problems that limit its usefulness in the management of dysphagia and/or limits its suitability to be used by those with dysphagia and other diseases. Starch is an easily digested carbohydrate. It adds calories to diets, and is thereby unsuitable for use with those who are on calorie restrictions, such as the morbidly obese. Starch consumption elevates blood sugars and can not be easily used by diabetics. Starch contains gluten that makes it unsuitable for those with celiac's disease. Ketogenic diets, which control epileptic seizures by limiting digestible carbohydrate consumption also are inappropriate for starch thickeners. Finally, the palatability of starch thickened beverages is poor, “Texture and Flavor Characteristics of Beverages Containing Commercial Thickening Agents for Dysphagia Diets”, V. Lotong, Journal of Food Science, Vol. 68, Nr. 4, 2003, pp. 1537-1541. Patients have long complained of the poor appearance and taste of beverages prepared with starch and are inclined to resist drinking beverages. This can be especially problematic with patients of a young age or who have concomitant dementia or other impairment of cognitive communications.
Despite advances in the technology of food administration to patients, it is highly desired to have a composition which can be effectively administered to alleviate at least one of difficulty in swallowing, inability to swallow, and discomfort in swallowing to a dysphagic patient.